Interior minister Peter Beuth of the German state Hesse wants to "exterminate" the term "E-Sports".

ekim · Dec 4, 2018

Link: https://www.golem.de/news/innenminister-wir-muessen-den-begriff-e-sport-ausradieren-1811-137955.html

"E-Sport hat mit Sport nichts zu tun. Wir müssen diesen Begriff ausradieren"

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"E-Sports have nothing to do with sports. We need to exterminate that term"

The ruling coalition in Germany has plans to acknowledge E-Sports in union- and association rights (so basically people can found official clubs with certain benefits covered by the German law) and to support them in creating Olympic outlooks.

This plan was referred to as being "catastrophic" by the same politician.

His reasoning is, that he wants kids to go back to gyms and playing fields instead of sitting in front of a console.
He also mentions that E-Sports are not being played out by rules of sport associations but instead by the rules of American companies.

tadaima · Dec 4, 2018

As long as motorsports are considered "sports" then esports can be considered sports.

Oreiller · Dec 4, 2018

I agree. Kompetitiv Killerspiele would be a much better name.

lucebuce · Dec 4, 2018

I agree. Eat-Sports would be a much better name.

RestEerie · Dec 4, 2018

ekim said:
His reasoning is, that he wants kids to go back to gyms and playing fields instead of sitting in front of a console.

I want to ask him:
Is Snooker/Billard/Pool a sport?
what is his opinion on chess?
How about Archery?

Pokémon · Dec 4, 2018

Never change German government. Their mindset towards the videogame industry is still stuck in the stone age and a lot of them think that all videogames only consist of Call of Duty aka "killer games" and that's why the state of the videogame industry is so poor in Germany. No proper schools and very few German development studios.

HK-47 · Dec 4, 2018

Don't sports associations basically become companies?

unicornKnight · Dec 4, 2018

tadaima said:
As long as motorsports are considered "sports" then esports can be considered sports.

You have no idea how stressful to the body motorsports are. Plus the danger of accidents. They are as physical exercise as it can get.

GAMEPROFF · Dec 4, 2018

pld said:
Never change German government. Their mindset towards the videogame industry is still stuck in the stone age and a lot of them think that all videogames only consist of Call of Duty aka "killer games" and that's why the state of the videogame industry is so poor in Germany. No proper schools and very few German development studios.

The ruling coalition in Germany has plans to acknowledge E-Sports in union- and association rights (so basically people can found official clubs with certain benefits covered by the German law) and to support them in creating Olympic outlooks.

Right from the OP.

Hessen is not placing the federal government. Let him have his 5 minutes of old man yells at cloud when the people who matter in this case think different.

SweetVermouth · Dec 4, 2018

Are board games like chess recognized as sport in Germany? Anyway I think this is incredibly stupid because if you have ever been to a fighting game tourney for example, you would see how many people go out and want to meet other players. People with disabilities can (for the most part) compete and have fun even if they are not able to do physical sports.

imo it should be recognized and supported by the state but old ass politicians won't ever get it

inspectah · Dec 4, 2018

"Neuland"

bane833 · Dec 4, 2018

I agree that video games aren´t sports. But neither are shooting, chess, billiard or playing cards. So why draw the line at video games?

Abudiix · Dec 4, 2018

At first I Didn't know what E-Sport was, I thought it was a new form for sport that I haven't heard of but when I read it was gaming. I have to be honest I laughed. I think the should change the name to something else would fit it better. Wasn't there talk about adding it to The Olympics ?

Pingal Pratyush · Dec 4, 2018

Oreiller said:
Kompetitiv Killerspiele

Nice translation work there.

blonded · Dec 4, 2018

RISE UP

Noppie · Dec 4, 2018

Abudiix said:
At first I Didn't know what E-Sport was, I thought it was a new form for sport that I haven't heard of but when I read it was gaming. I have to be honest I laughed. I think the should change the name to something else would fit it better. Wasn't there talk about adding it to The Olympics ?

There still are, although it doesn't have a shot at it for now. The chairman (I think) is very much against it. But it's getting there. In Korea, the Korea Esports Association is member of the Olympic Commitee and has been a demonstration sport during the Korean Games, for example.

What's wrong with the name though? Take the Overwatch League for instance. Twenty teams around the world with contracts and fixed salaries (excluding bonusses) practicing their game for hours upon hours a day, working out and following a diet for a healthy body and mind while reviewing their games, coming up with strategies and competing against the best in the world.

If that's not sports, what would you call it? Professional Gaming, I guess, but there's a stigma on the name that would prevent it from growing. The term 'esports' is much more attractive and marketable.

ekim · Dec 4, 2018

Abudiix said:
At first I Didn't know what E-Sport was, I thought it was a new form for sport that I haven't heard of but when I read it was gaming. I have to be honest I laughed. I think the should change the name to something else would fit it better. Wasn't there talk about adding it to The Olympics ?

There are a lot of talks about only naming videogames in the sport genre (FIFA, Forza, GT etc...) E-Sports and all the other genres E-Gaming.

Zaubrer · Dec 4, 2018

He's right because it is written Esports or eSports, just like Email oder eMail.

Joking aside, exterminate is a hard word, but it is ridiculous to try to suppress a debate about something.

Deleted member 8166 · Dec 4, 2018

SweetVermouth said:
Are board games like chess recognized as sport in Germany? Anyway I think this is incredibly stupid because if you have ever been to a fighting game tourney for example, you would see how many people go out and want to meet other players. People with disabilities can (for the most part) compete and have fun even if they are not able to do physical sports.

imo it should be recognized and supported by the state but old ass politicians won't ever get it

They are a competitive sport in Germany, yes. Something like dart is also seen as sport here

trashkitty · Dec 4, 2018

pld said:
Never change German government. Their mindset towards the videogame industry is still stuck in the stone age and a lot of them think that all videogames only consist of Call of Duty aka "killer games" and that's why the state of the videogame industry is so poor in Germany. No proper schools and very few German development studios.

Are there really that few development studios, specially when compared to the rest of Europe? The only other place I can think of that has a proper gaming industry is the UK, but compared to the rest of Europe, Germany has quite a few things. I know of various studios here in Berlin, in Frankfurt, in Munich, not to mention that ESL is (AFAIK) heavily based in Germany. There's also the fact that Gamescom takes place in Cologne (which Merkel even visited last year), there's Gamesweek in Berlin, and Twitchcon happening together with it next year.

I can understand that the perception of gaming from parts of government is stuck in the stone age, but claiming that the state of the videogame industry in Germany is poor seems like a huge lack of perception as well.

Noppie · Dec 4, 2018

Zaubrer said:
He's right because it is written Esports or eSports, just like Email oder eMail.

Joking aside, exterminate is a hard word, but it is ridiculous to try to suppress a debate about something.

The correct spelling is just 'esports'.

Dee Dee · Dec 4, 2018

pld said:
Never change German government. Their mindset towards the videogame industry is still stuck in the stone age and a lot of them think that all videogames only consist of Call of Duty aka "killer games" and that's why the state of the videogame industry is so poor in Germany. No proper schools and very few German development studios.

It's not cars or coal, so it's not worth investing in!!!!

SweetVermouth said:
Are board games like chess recognized as sport in Germany? Anyway I think this is incredibly stupid because if you have ever been to a fighting game tourney for example, you would see how many people go out and want to meet other players. People with disabilities can (for the most part) compete and have fun even if they are not able to do physical sports.

imo it should be recognized and supported by the state but old ass politicians won't ever get it

Chess has union and association rights, yes. I'll bet my right arm that "Skat" has association rights too. (Very popular card game here.)

inspectah said:
"Neuland"

Makes me so angry that we have spotty signal coverage at best, outdated wiring, and no concept how to improve our internet infrastructure, but oh, the refugees are ruining this country.

Edit:

trashkitty said:
Are there really that few development studios, specially when compared to the rest of Europe? The only other place I can think of that has a proper gaming industry is the UK, but compared to the rest of Europe, Germany has quite a few things. I know of various studios here in Berlin, in Frankfurt, in Munich, not to mention that ESL is (AFAIK) heavily based in Germany. There's also the fact that Gamescom takes place in Cologne (which Merkel even visited last year), there's Gamesweek in Berlin, and Twitchcon happening together with it next year.

I can understand that the perception of gaming from parts of government is stuck in the stone age, but claiming that the state of the videogame industry in Germany is poor seems like a huge lack of perception as well.

Our biggest claim to fame is Crytek, and that not going too well, is it?
Otherwise it's mostly big companies having smaller studios here that mostly deal with distribution and localisation, simply because we're pretty central: Nintendo, EA (Cologne), Ubisoft (Düsseldorf) and of course Koch Media (Munich) as one of Europe's biggest publishers.

There is no "Made in Germany" game that would really give the industry recognition in the entertainment sector, the closest thing to that is probably Farming Simulator, but that is actually made by a Swiss company (Giants Software).

Diego Renault · Dec 4, 2018

Just call it Competitive Gaming. CPG or whatnot.

I agree that Gaming is no "Sport". But like others said. Many other things aren't "sports" either.

tadaima · Dec 4, 2018

unicornKnight said:
You have no idea how stressful to the body motorsports are. Plus the danger of accidents. They are as physical exercise as it can get.

I have an understanding, due to my father and grandfather's obsessions with and participation in competitive motorsports. My grandfather built his career around it.

Ultimately, you are operating a programmable machine – albeit one of hardware rather than one of software. Each requires immense concentration and many years of training.

However, operating a vehicle competitively does not require nearly as much strength nor stamina as operating a bicycle/canoe/horse, or pushing your body to the limit with any other athletic sport.

Shooting exists as an Olympic sport.

It all depends on where you want to draw the line.

Elfotografoalocado · Dec 4, 2018

tadaima said:
As long as motorsports are considered "sports" then esports can be considered sports.

Lol motorsport are extremely physically demanding, and require to be in a top level of fitness, since you have to endure extreme forces, temperatures, all while seating in a tight spot for hours, and performing extremely precise and stressful driving.
Look at the physique of the average Formula 1 driver and then at the physique of the average "eSports" player lol.

Zaubrer · Dec 4, 2018

Noppie said:
The correct spelling is just 'esports'.

As long as no hyphen parts the e from the sports I am fine with it.

Pennywise · Dec 4, 2018

trashkitty said:
Are there really that few development studios, specially when compared to the rest of Europe? The only other place I can think of that has a proper gaming industry is the UK, but compared to the rest of Europe, Germany has quite a few things. I know of various studios here in Berlin, in Frankfurt, in Munich, not to mention that ESL is (AFAIK) heavily based in Germany. There's also the fact that Gamescom takes place in Cologne (which Merkel even visited last year), there's Gamesweek in Berlin, and Twitchcon happening together with it next year.

I can understand that the perception of gaming from parts of government is stuck in the stone age, but claiming that the state of the videogame industry in Germany is poor seems like a huge lack of perception as well.

It is quite poor though, for various reasons.
There is no big publisher here, which is partially one of the big points when it comes to AAA games. There is no real AAA studio, unless you count up Crytek that is struggling quite a bit.
There are no government programms to establish the sector (less taxes, like you've got it in certain parts of Canada for example).
The majority of developers are focused on genres that are more or less focused on the german market, like simulation games or adventures. Mobile games might be a different thing, since I hardly pay attention to it.
Alot of people with the necessary degrees end up in other buisness sectors, that have better working conditions and better payment.

There is a videogame industry in Germany, but it's rather small and I don't wanna throw around the word niche, but the focus isn't really on products that could have a worldwide impact.
However, maybe some indie studios will grow over time and establish themselves, opening up a bigger market here.

To get back to the topic. The usual nonsense by someone. Instead of actually trying to help those local sport clubs, so they're more sucessful with their recruitment, he's playing the blame game.

starblue · Dec 4, 2018

I kinda agree, because sport is related with physique effort mainly, not mentally effort. Do you consider chess a sport (and it's a olympic game)? Maybe the best term is just: eCompetition or something like that....

But tbh I dont care lol

trashkitty · Dec 4, 2018

Dee Dee said:
Our biggest claim to fame is Crytek, and that not going too well, is it?
Otherwise it's mostly big companies having smaller studios here that mostly deal with distribution and localisation, simply because we're pretty central: Nintendo, EA (Cologne), Ubisoft (Düsseldorf) and of course Koch Media (Munich) as one of Europe's biggest publishers.

There is no "Made in Germany" game that would really give the industry recognition in the entertainment sector, the closest thing to that is probably Farming Simulator, but that is actually made by a Swiss company (Giants Software).

Ubisoft does actual development (Anno anyone?) and they also have a studio here in Berlin. You got Cloud Imperium (which yeah, they scooped up a lot of people from CryTek). Here in Berlin there's also a pretty huge studio from King and Wooga, not to mention Yager. There's InnoGames in Hamburg, there's Grimlore and Mimimi in Munich...I could go on. Those are just someone of the ones I heard of or know about of the top of my head.

Yeah, there may not be a huge claim to fame from German based studios, but even the UK is a lot like that these days (everything is owned by EA, Sony, etc, even Rockstar isn't seen much as something started in Scotland anymore) and people still consider it to have a strong gaming industry.

justiceiro · Dec 4, 2018

ekim said:
His reasoning is, that he wants kids to go back to gyms and playing fields instead of sitting in front of a console.

Not that bad to be hones-

ekim said:
He also mentions that E-Sports are not being played out by rules of sport associations but instead by the rules of American companies.

LMAO, you lost me.

LORANT92 · Dec 4, 2018

Village idiot given a platform as usual.

RestEerie said:
I want to ask him:
Is Snooker/Billard/Pool a sport?
what is his opinion on chess?
How about Archery?

🚮

inspectah · Dec 4, 2018

Also, "ausradieren" is a really, really bad choice of words.
This is a war term and has too many negative associations with the third reich.

Harry Potter Obama · Dec 4, 2018

I've heard enough about extermination from German politicians, thanks.

Anyway It's laughable but I don't really think e-sports should be classified as sports either. Then again I feel the same way about

Abudiix · Dec 4, 2018

ekim said:
There are a lot of talks about only naming videogames in the sport genre (FIFA, Forza, GT etc...) E-Sports and all the other genres E-Gaming.

I think E-Gaming sounds better if I'm honest.

Kemono · Dec 4, 2018

Nobody knows who this clown is. Not even in germany...

Nuclear Muffin · Dec 4, 2018

RestEerie said:
I want to ask him:
Is Snooker/Billard/Pool a sport?
what is his opinion on chess?
How about Archery?

Archery is the only one that is actually considered a sport internationally though?

The rest you mentioned are Games of Skill, but not sports. And with archery, there is a physical act of dexterity and yes, stamina, as well (long-bows are unwieldy for most untrained people and require high levels of strength and stamina for professional competition).

Also Motorsports are indeed a branch of sport because they are highly physically demanding.

"e-sports" as the term is applied today, has no place at the Olympic games. And that's ok, it should be its own thing; not shoved into something that it doesn't belong in, just to make some people feel better about their life choices and choice of hobby.

thisismadness · Dec 4, 2018

"Esports" already distinguishes them from other sports, so I dont see why the term needs to be "exterminated". Its similar to motorsports, which use to (maybe it still does?) get a lot of shit for not being real sports.

SigSig · Dec 4, 2018

Die CDU muss ausradiert werden.

TissueBox · Dec 4, 2018

Give the people their rights! *pizza-pickets*

BAN PUNCHER · Dec 4, 2018

sibarraz · Dec 4, 2018

Don't know why we are too shy to call them videogame competitions.

VX1 · Dec 4, 2018

GayAnimeDad said:
I've heard enough about extermination from German politicians, thanks.

Anyway It's laughable but I don't really think e-sports should be classified as sports either. Then again I feel the same way about

Indeed,German minister should know better then to use this terminology...this is shameful.

SPRidley · Dec 4, 2018

Is him a Dale...

BAN PUNCHER said:

DAMN, too late lol

SweetVermouth · Dec 4, 2018

If you solely define sports as athletic competition then you would need to ban every sport that does not require physical training. If however that is not the case and you just show hate because you don't get competitive video games then maybe you should shut up and let someone else do you job.

I mean I watch Formula 1 too and all the drivers have to be in perfect shape (strong enough muscles to withstand the g-forces but lean enough to not weight much) in order to compete and the races are extremely exhausting and I still meet people who think it's just driving in circles. If they can't even aknowledge motorsports then how would they ever do so for video games? Because video games actually do require a higher amount of physical training, for your fingers, then for example chess.

Akai · Dec 4, 2018

"ausradieren"... yikes...

Like, couldn't you have said something along those lines of "abschaffen" or "umbennen"? Poor choice of words from a state official, but to the surprise of noone.

Xater · Dec 4, 2018

SigSig said:
Die CDU muss ausradiert werden.

Now we are talking.

Sanox · Dec 4, 2018

Meanwhile further up north in Denmark

In a ringing endorsement of esports, the prime minister of Denmark opened the Counter-Strike: Global Offensive Blast Pro Series tournament over the weekend.

https://www.gamesindustry.biz/artic...ister-opens-counter-strike-esports-tournament

https://www.dexerto.com/csgo/there-...rating-counter-strike-global-offensive-205190

Kthulhu · Dec 4, 2018

If you're worried about kids health then push for mandatory PE or something. Don't see why you need to drag down a competition.

Kareha · Dec 4, 2018

tadaima said:
As long as motorsports are considered "sports" then esports can be considered sports.

Motorsports take a very physical toll on the body, pretty sure gamers aren't doing 3-5g in turns per session.

Heckler456 · Dec 4, 2018

tadaima said:
As long as motorsports are considered "sports" then esports can be considered sports.

Rofl. Do you think doing motorsports is like driving your family to the park or something? That shit is physically extremely intense.

Interior minister Peter Beuth of the German state Hesse wants to "exterminate" the term "E-Sports".

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